Dorinda Cox (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move Greens amendment (1) on sheet 1689:

(1) Page 6 (after line 1), at the end of Part 2, add:

9A Beetaloo Basin Drilling Program

No amount appropriated by this Act is to be spent on the Beetaloo Basin Drilling Program referred to on page 41 of the Portfolio Budget Statements 2022-23 for the Industry, Science and Resources Portfolio, which was tabled in both Houses of the Parliament on 25 October 2022.

Statement pursuant to the order of the Senate of 26 June 2000

The amendment is framed as a request because it is to a bill which appropriates moneys for the ordinary annual services of the government.

Sta tement by the Clerk of the Senate pursuant to the order of the Senate of 26 June 2000

As this is a bill appropriating moneys for the ordinary annual services of government within the meaning of section 53 of the Constitution, any Senate amendments to the bill must be moved as requests. This is in accordance with the precedents of the Senate.

Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The government will not be supporting the amendment circulated and moved by Senator Cox. The $30 million appropriated for 2022-23 for the Beetaloo drilling program is money that was contractually committed by the previous government. The Albanese government has committed to not review the Beetaloo drilling program.

Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

r RUSTON (—) (): This amendment would mean that no funding could be spent on the Beetaloo basin drilling program which provides entities incorporated in Australia with funding to accelerate exploration and appraisal of activities in the Beetaloo basin. Sadly, this is typical of the Greens: in a budget delivered by Labor that shows that gas prices and energy prices will rise, they want to reduce the supply of gas. The Northern Territory Beetaloo basin is one of the largest undeveloped onshore gas resources in the world. The development of this resource has the potential to create 6,000 jobs by 2040, transform the Northern Territory's economy and supply gas into domestic markets for decades to come. It is disappointing that the Greens are so detached from reality that they continue to talk down a vital Australian industry that provides jobs and funds services across the country and will assist Australia's energy supply into the future.

Peter Whish-Wilson (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We're very disappointed at the response from the Labor Party on this. Millions of Australians voted for change at this last election. This is why we have a progressive alliance in this parliament: to actually act on the key challenges of our time, like climate change. While people around this country, including in my home state of Tasmania, are preparing for another flood event after more record rainfalls, what do we see in this budget? More public money for fossil fuel projects—for the Beetaloo basin and the Northern Territory gas hub. There is over $40 billion across the budget for fossil fuel subsidies.

This is not what Australians voted for. Australians voted for change and it's clear from this budget that was delivered last night that they're just going to have to wait a little bit longer before the Labor Party wakes up and realises that we are in a climate emergency and that we need to do everything we can to reduce emissions. It is insanity in this day and age in a climate crisis to be giving more taxpayers' money to fossil fuel projects. Absolutely that's what this amendment is there to do—it's to remove taxpayers' money to fund fossil fuel projects, to pour more petrol on the fire. Communities around Australia are looking at these temperature and weather records being broken every day. Just this week, Sydney recorded its highest annual rainfall on record. It's expected in the next few weeks that records will be broken across Victoria. In Tasmania, two of our key rivers had record flood levels just last week. Australians have woken up to this. When is this government going to wake up to it as well?

Deborah O'Neill (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the request for amendment be agreed to.